Oconee County Investigators Use Internet to Track Stolen Property
Cherish Keatts News Channel 7 Monday, February 6, 2006
From tools, to TV's, jewelry and guns: nothing is off limits to thieves. Just ask Michael Mason. His utility trailer was stolen recently. He says, "It's a bad feeling to come home and your property is gone. At least if I can't get it back, I know he can't do it again."
That's because deputies were able to track down the guy they think stole the trailer, thanks to a program called l.e.a.d.s.online. The Oconee County Sheriff's Office has subscribed to the service for about six months and investigators tell me it's helping them solve cases. Investigator David Smith says, "We put in the suspect's name, date of birth and we were able to find which pawn shops he was actually going to and that's how we kept track of him."
Investigators used to spend hours checking pawn tickets the old fashioned way, by hand, but now the transactions are uploaded onto the Internet allowing investigators to track who's pawning what and where. They're able to do that all with just the click of a mouse. The service also allows investigators to "red flag" a suspect. After the officer enters the suspect's information, he can request an email alert if that person pawns anything within a certain period of time.
l.e.a.d.s.online has plans to expand. One day investigators hope they'll be able to search eBay for stolen property too. Investigator Smith says, "I think it's very important because number one, you've got more items going through eBay than a pawn shop."
Officers say the success of the program also depends on you. They need you to write down serial numbers from all of your valuables. If something of yours is stolen, officers can type in the serial number and find out if it has been pawned within a matter of seconds.
© 2006
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